Manila’s Vertical Housing Turns Over 65 Homes, 40 to Health Workers

Sixty-five Manila families received keys to three new vertical housing towers on Wednesday, with 40 of the slots going to Manila Health Department employees rather than the informal settler families most readers would expect. Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso and Vice Mayor Chi Atienza led the handover at the San Lazaro, Pedro Gil, and San Sebastian Residences under the city’s In-City Vertical Housing Program, the handover ceremony on July 1, 2026 reports. The handover split its 65 keys between 40 city government staff and 25 walk-in awardees. The event was the second formal turnover this year, following 108 families who received units at San Lazaro Residences in April.

The three towers are part of a buildout Manila financed with a P10 billion loan from the Development Bank of the Philippines. San Lazaro Residences in Sta. Cruz is the largest at 382 units across 20 storeys. Pedro Gil Residences in San Andres Bukid has 309 units, and San Sebastian Residences in Quiapo has 243. Each unit has two bedrooms, and the buildings share community amenities that include health centres, function rooms, and 24-hour security. The city government is targeting 10,000 in-city vertical housing units by the end of 2026, the in-city vertical housing timeline to date shows.

Manila Hands Over 65 New Homes Across Three Residences

The handover on July 1 is the second formal turnover this year. The first, on April 23, awarded keys to 108 families at San Lazaro Residences, the April 23 turnover of 108 families reported. Both events fall well short of what Manila and the national government are trying to relocate. The Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development is targeting 1.133 million housing units by 2028, with about 90,000 units planned for completion this year.

Each of the three buildings carries different amenities. The Manila Standard report noted that all three include two-bedroom units, health centres, function rooms, and 24-hour security. San Lazaro Residences sits on the corner of Alvarez and Quiricada Streets in Sta. Cruz, and adds a public health laboratory, a swimming pool, 132 parking slots, and an outdoor activity area on the 19th floor. Pedro Gil Residences in San Andres Bukid includes a swimming pool and a health centre. San Sebastian Residences in Quiapo carries the smallest unit count at 243, with each unit sized at 40 square meters.

Why 40 of the 65 Are Health Department Workers

The 40 Manila Health Department (MHD) employees among the 65 families are part of a beneficiary pool the program has carried since its early buildings. City government staff at the lower salary grades were included in the program’s design from the start. The lot that became San Lazaro Residences was previously the Manila Health Department’s parking lot and public health centre site.

President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. inaugurated San Lazaro Residences on November 27, 2025, and praised Mayor Domagoso’s blueprint at the ceremony. the inauguration of San Lazaro Residences reported Marcos told Domagoso the city’s housing speed was “just a dream for us at NHA and then at DHSUD.” The P1.9 billion building now carries a public health laboratory and health centre on its lower floors, and the MHD staff moving in are becoming neighbours of their own workplace. Binondominium in Binondo, which preceded San Lazaro by four years, was also earmarked for vendors and health workers, Gulf News reported.

The selection rules published earlier this year lay out the program’s two-tier qualification. A public raffle held on March 18, 2026 picked recipients for 100 housing units across the three towers, with separate slots set aside for government workers and walk-in awardees. The Daily Tribune’s inauguration coverage noted that San Lazaro Residences is open to “marginalized Manila residents and government workers at Salary Grade 8 and below.” Health department employees at the lower grades fit the eligibility bracket that also covers informal settler families.

What’s Inside Each of the Three Buildings

San Lazaro Residences is the largest of the three. It carries 20 storeys and 382 residential units, with a public health laboratory and a health centre occupying floors 1 through 4. Five lifts serve the residential floors, plus a separate lift for the laboratory. The building includes 132 parking slots, a swimming pool, function rooms on the 5th, 9th, 14th, and 19th floors, indoor activity areas from the 6th to the 18th, and a roof deck. The Daily Tribune’s inauguration coverage put the project cost at P1.9 billion.

Pedro Gil Residences is also 20 storeys, with 309 units in San Andres Bukid. San Sebastian Residences rounds out the trio at 243 units across 20 storeys in Quiapo, where each unit is sized at 40 square meters. The Rappler list of Moreno’s housing projects describes all three as catering to informal settlers in the capital.

Each unit in San Lazaro includes two bedrooms, a living and dining area, a kitchen, and a toilet and bath, the Daily Tribune’s inauguration coverage reported. The P10 billion DBP loan that financed San Lazaro, Pedro Gil, and San Sebastian also covered three schools, Rappler reported. All three buildings are offered to qualified beneficiaries under City Ordinance No. 8730, the local government’s housing framework for city residents. Pedro Gil and San Sebastian share the smaller unit sizes with Binondominium in Binondo, which carries 300 units for vendors and health workers.

The vertical housing program has, from its second building onward, built space for city employees as well as informal settlers. The 40 MHD staff in this cohort are part of that pool. The vertical housing program is funded separately from the national 4PH program run by DHSUD.

Domagoso’s Message to the New Homeowners

Domagoso’s message at the handover was practical, not celebratory. He reminded the new homeowners that the city’s role ends at the door and the residents’ role begins on the corridor and the stairwell. Domagoso used similar framing at the April 23 turnover of 108 families at San Lazaro Residences, Manila Bulletin reported. His Tagalog remarks urged the recipients to keep their new homes and shared spaces clean.

Kayo ay tumanggap ng isang malinis na bahay at pamayanan. Panatilihin ninyo itong malinis kasi hindi naman ako ang titira diyan, kayo rin. Ipagkusa na ang disiplina. Ipagmalasakit ninyo ang inyong sarili at inyong kapitbahay.

Mayor Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso delivered the remarks at the July 1 turnover ceremony at the San Lazaro, Pedro Gil, and San Sebastian Residences, Manila Standard reported. His April message told recipients they were “just among the few from the thousands who have benefited from our program.” At the April ceremony, Domagoso told recipients to “keep working together and showing compassion for one another.”

Manila’s Vertical Housing Drive Since 2019

Manila’s in-city vertical housing program did not begin on July 1. The city’s first mid-rise tower for “estero” dwellers was Tondominium in Tondo, which launched in 2019 and turned over its 400-plus units in 2021. Binondominium followed in 2021 with 300 units for vendors and health workers on former parking lots in Binondo. The 2023-to-2025 expansion wave added San Lazaro, Pedro Gil, San Sebastian, and more projects under construction, including Binondominium 2. San Lazaro was the fourth housing project the city completed. The wider rollout draws on NHA partnerships and private developers.

Manila targets 10,000 units of in-city vertical housing by the end of 2026. The national picture carries its own scale. Since President Marcos took office in 2022, the government has built more than 423,000 housing units under the Expanded Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino (4PH) program. The DHSUD is targeting 1.133 million units by 2028, with about 90,000 units planned for completion this year. Pag-IBIG Fund is offering a 3% interest rate for the first five years of loans under the program to keep monthly payments affordable.

The need is far larger than the supply. The National Housing Authority estimates 406,000 households are informal settlers in Metropolitan Manila, translating to over 2 million people. The handover on Wednesday moves that count by a fraction of a percent. Domagoso acknowledged the gap himself in April, telling those recipients that they were “just among the few from the thousands.”

The Numbers Behind the 65-Family Handover

Most coverage of the July 1 handover leads with the headline number. The longer read sits underneath. A short stat snapshot frames the scale.

• 65 families handed keys on July 1, 2026
• 40 Manila Health Department employees among the 65
• 382 total units in San Lazaro Residences
• 10,000 in-city vertical housing units Manila targets by 2026
• 406,000 informal settler households in Metro Manila (NHA)

The 40 health-department slots are the surprise in this cohort. San Lazaro Residences sits on the lot the MHD used to occupy, and the building now houses a public health laboratory and health centre inside it. The selection rules have always included government workers at Salary Grade 8 and below. Manila’s Binondominium, which launched in 2021, was also earmarked for vendors and health workers. The MHD staff moving in will work in the same building they now live in.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Manila In-City Vertical Housing Program?

A city government initiative to build mid-rise residential buildings inside Manila for informal settler families and qualified government workers rather than relocating them to outlying sites. It began in 2019 with Tondominium in Tondo and has added Binondominium and three more residences in Sta. Cruz, San Andres Bukid, and Quiapo. The program targets 10,000 units by the end of 2026.

Who qualifies for a unit?

Informal settler families and city government workers at Salary Grade 8 and below. The Daily Tribune’s inauguration coverage for San Lazaro Residences specifically lists “marginalized Manila residents and government workers at Salary Grade 8 and below.” A public raffle held on March 18, 2026 picked recipients for 100 housing units across the three towers, with 50 drawn for San Lazaro, 25 for Pedro Gil, and 25 for San Sebastian.

How many families have received homes under the program so far?

Two formal turnovers in 2026 have moved families in. The first, on April 23, 2026, handed keys to 108 families at San Lazaro Residences, Manila Bulletin reported. The second, on July 1, 2026, added 65 more across the three towers, per Manila Standard. Construction continues on additional buildings, including Binondominium 2.

Is this part of the national 4PH housing program?

No. The Manila In-City Vertical Housing Program is a city government program funded by a P10 billion loan from the Development Bank of the Philippines, Rappler reported. The national 4PH program is separate and is run by the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, which has built more than 423,000 housing units since President Marcos took office in 2022.